A’s claim yet another Aussie, and Manny Ramirez’s schedule set

The A’s claimed lefty reliever Travis Blackley, who once was in the Oakland system, from the Giants today – that means the team has had four Aussies on the roster this season, and three was already a major-league record. Joey Devine was moved to the 60-day DL to make room for Blackley on the 40-man roster, but a corresponding move has not been made on the 25-man roster. I’m told Blackley is not expected to report today, so a move probably won’t come until tomorrow.

The A’s already have four left-handed relievers, so if they’d like to keep some balance in the bullpen, rookie lefty Pedro Figueroa is likely the man heading out when Blackley arrives. Figueroa has pitched better than right-hander Andrew Carignan – although very small sample sizes for both – but he has allowed a run in each of his past two outings, giving up two walks and three hits in those 2 1/3 innings.

I went to ask remaining Australian Grant Balfour about the A’s cornering the market on players from Down Under and he said he just hopes that Blackley sticks around longer than Luke Hughes and Rich Thompson, who were with the team a matter of days rather than weeks.

When I was asking Balfour about having four Aussies on the roster in a six-week span, Carignan joked, “Four too many, if you ask me!”

The A’s have released Manny Ramirez’s schedule for his minor-league assignment, and he is, as expected, reporting to Triple-A Sacramento at Albuquerque this weekend – Saturday, rather than Sunday, because he will spend May 29 traveling to meet the A’s in Minnesota and the team wants him to get in his full allotment of eligible minor-league games, 10 in all. The River Cats have “Manny Pack” ticket specials that include Ramirez River Cats’ T-shirts, and other Manny-related ticket deals; check their website for more information, but he’ll be there May 25-28.

What happens to the A’s other DHs, Seth Smith and Jonny Gomes, when Ramirez returns? I can’t imagine the A’s removing either from the roster – both are valuable pieces and Gomes has become a team leader in the mold of Mark Kotsay, a man who has the young players believing in themselves and that has shown in the A’s results. But playing time for both will drop off barring a trade of some sort or injuries in the outfield.

The A’s haven’t made any decisions on a roster move when Ramirez joins the team May 30, especially given all their recent injuries, but the best bet would be one of the left-handed hitting first basemen, and Daric Barton is the one with options left. Kila Ka’aihue is back in the lineup today after missing three games with a hamstring strain.

UPDATE: Manager Bob Melvin said that Blackley will be the long man. He had Blackley in short stints at Seattle and at Arizona, but he hasn’t seen him much since. Because Blackley will be in long relief, the left-right thing doesn’t come into play so much, so maybe it will be Carignan heading out, but it could be Figueroa, too.